Bleach: Orange Blaze, Amber Flame 12: A Happy Christmas Day
by YenGirl
Summary: It's time to celebrate Christmas as a year filled with wonderful memories draws to a close. Sequel to A Happy Autumn Day. Gift for Fanofthisfiction.


**Author Note:** Season's Greetings, everyone! This story continues from **A Happy Autumn Day** so it will make more sense if you've read that one. It's also the final story of my Orange Blaze, Amber Flame series that covers the course of one year from January to December.

To everyone who has read any or all of these stories, I hoped you have enjoyed it. To everyone who took the time to also leave me a review - and they were lovely, lovely ones - my heartfelt thanks for brightening up my day!

Details on Christmas and traditional dishes in Japan were gratefully sourced from various sites on the internet. Any mistakes made are my own.

 **Dedication:** This story is dedicated to the absolutely wonderful **fanofthisfiction** who has made me smile more times than I care to remember ever since she came across my profile. Apart from writing heartwarming, thought provoking stories, she selflessly spreads genuine positivity for a hobby that eats up countless hours of precious time, yet goes largely unpaid except for the written encouragement received. She is A True Gem! My grateful thanks also goes to **Poodie** who organised this gift challenge for **fanofthisfiction**.

 **Warnings:** Fluff and lots of food!

 **Rating:** T

 **Disclaimer:** Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.

\- Story Start -

Orihime Inoue woke up early, her eyes going to the window at once. Snow had been forecast for today, but the skies were still clear. Beaming, she sat up and stretched her arms high above her head. It looked like it was going to be a beautiful Christmas Eve!

After a quick wash, she knelt at the small altar with Sora's photo on it. She lit a joss stick, placed it in the holder and bowed her head in prayer.

"Good morning, onii-chan! It's Christmas Eve and we're all invited to Urahara-san's for dinner and a sleepover! I can't believe it's Christmas tomorrow! This year has simply flown by, hasn't it?"

And it had been a wonderful one. She smiled when she thought of how she and Ichigo had started dating; blushed when she remembered what happened in his room after they had gotten caught in the rain last month; and then smiled even more when she remembered how welcome Ichigo's father and sisters always made her feel.

"We'll have lots of fun so please don't worry about me, onii-chan."

She bowed again before getting to her feet. It was time to have breakfast and get started on making _manju_ , Chinese style buns with red bean filling, to take to Urahara's. She had already bought the ingredients earlier in the week, knowing the shops would be crowded with last minute shoppers looking for groceries or gifts.

It was a tradition for young couples in Japan to enjoy Christmas Eve dinner together and spend Christmas Day with family, but Orihime and Ichigo were just as happy to spend both days in the company of family and friends.

The morning flew by and soon, it was time for Orihime to change into jeans and a long sleeved shirt with a festive red and green sweater over it. She packed a woolen scarf, her winter jacket, toiletries and the present she had bought for the gift exchange on Christmas morning. Everyone would bring a gift and get one in return. Urahara had suggested it, saying it was more practical than each person buying presents for everyone.

Orihime had also bought a personal gift for Ichigo, but decided to present it to him in private. She didn't want a public spectacle like what had happened with the Valentine's Day chocolates.

\- o -

Despite the cold weather, Karakura Town was bustling with people. Orihime arrived at the shopping mall to find her friends waiting for her at one of the fast food outlets. Ichigo was there with Karin and Yuzu who waved excitedly to her as if they hadn't just seen her two nights ago for dinner.

"Urahara-san invited our dad too," Karin said after they had all gotten burgers, fries and drinks and sat down.

"He promised to come tomorrow morning," Yuzu added.

"Threatened, you mean," Ichigo muttered.

Rukia grinned at that. She and Renji were wearing their new gigai which Ichigo had kept for them since last month. Neither of them had gotten gifts yet and Sado wanted to buy some fruit to take to Urahara's so they spent an hour at the crowded mall before heading over to the shoten.

\- o -

Urahara and Tessai were waiting for them when they arrived.

"Welcome, everyone!" Urahara greeted with a wide grin and outstretched arms. _"Merry Kurisumasu!"_

Tessai had both arms out too, but to help carry in their things rather than look for hugs.

"Everyone, come in out of the cold," he invited.

They went inside to find all the shelves of merchandise pushed to the sides and covered with canvas while the _shoji_ doors separating the front and back portions of the shop had been opened wide. Brand new tatami mats covered the stone floor and extra lighting made the whole area look bright and spacious.

A medium sized fir tree stood in a corner near one of the sliding doors, its green branches still bare. Seeing the raised eyebrows directed his way, Urahara grinned.

"It was waiting for you all," he said simply. Right on cue, Jinta and Ururu walked in, carrying boxes of decorations and tinsel.

"Hello, everyone," Ururu greeted in her soft voice. "Sorry we took so long."

"We had to queue up for _ages_ ," Jinta grumbled.

"Ah, thank you for your trouble, you're both just in time," Urahara said cheerfully.

With so many volunteers eager to decorate the tree, Ichigo and Orihime went to the kitchen to see if Tessai needed any help. He assured them that he had dinner under control, but hadn't gotten the guest bedroom ready for them yet.

That was all the prompting Ichigo and Orihime needed to take out the extra futon and unroll them. There were only three so Orihime decided to share one with Rukia and let the four boys have the other two. Ichigo found a foldable screen, dusted it off and set it up between the futon. By the time they went back out, the tree decorations were just about complete.

Ichigo and Orihime exchanged startled looks before avoiding each other's gazes. The tree looked like someone had just _poured_ the decorations over it; the branches dripping with tinsel and weighed down with baubles.

Renji hoisted Rukia up to place a doll on the topmost branch. Everyone held their breath when the tree started tilting to one side, but a quick _kidou_ spell from Urahara snapped it upright again.

"Hmm. I may have asked Jinta-kun and Ururu-chan to buy a bit too much," he mused, tapping his chin with his fan.

"You always do," Yoruichi said as she strolled inside the shoten in her feline form. "That's why you should've waited for me. Why, that tree looks... looks..."

With everyone's hopeful gazes on her, including Urahara's puppy dog look, Yoruichi sighed and cleared her throat.

"... very Christmassy."

Everyone cheered, satisfied with her (apparent) approval before getting out their gifts and arranging them at the base of the tree. Yoruichi hopped onto Sado's shoulder with a small sack between her teeth and kept him busy attaching tiny sprigs of mistletoe to the ceiling with cellophane tape.

Meanwhile, Tessai and Ururu brought out trays of hot green tea, Ishida's castella cake and Orihime's manju. They sat down to chat and admire the tree while Urahara started requesting for things to be fetched and arranged for him. It was all an exercise to catch two or more people under the mistletoe with hilarious results.

Ichigo ended up having to kiss both Ururu and Sado on the cheek. A mortified Renji did the same to an equally embarrassed Ishida after grumblings from both parties. An excited Jinta delivered smacking kisses to Rukia and Orihime's cheeks, ignoring their boyfriends' intent stares, and Karin and Yuzu later did the same to a beaming, blushing Tessai.

"I believe Urahara-san hasn't had his turn yet," Ishida said, pushing up his glasses. He was still disgruntled over the kiss he had received from Renji.

"Nor has Yoruichi-san," Ichigo added.

"So we haven't," Urahara agreed and got to his feet, cradling Yoruichi inside his coat. Standing under one of the mistletoe sprigs, he spun around to face everyone as Yoruichi turned back to human form, her buttocks barely covered by the buttoned portion of his coat. The long and very passionate kiss that followed made Ichigo squawk as he tried to cover his sisters' eyes while Jinta pulled a disgusted face. The others applauded with laughter and varying degrees of enthusiasm and blushing.

\- o -

Dinner that night was a feast. Tessai brought out a tray piled high with piping hot golden fried chicken from KFC, the most popular Christmas dish in Japan. He had bought them a week ago to avoid the huge crowds and kept them well wrapped up in the freezer since then. He had also prepared roast turkey, ham, rice stuffing, mashed potatoes, salad, Japanese curry and mushroom miso soup; the last two dishes for those who preferred more traditional fare. Drinks was a choice of warm sake, citrus fruit tea or soda. Dessert was Yuzu's Japanese version of the Christmas cake, a light sponge decorated with fresh cream, strawberries, and a fat Santa Claus which looked suspiciously like Isshin Kurosaki.

The delicious fare was made even better by the festive atmosphere and the company of good friends. For a long while, there were only the sounds of happy eating, exclamations of how good the food tasted, laughter and the clink of cutlery against porcelain.

After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, they got up, groaning, and helped to clear the table. Tessai chivvied them out of his kitchen to watch a Don Kannoji Christmas special on TV, but Orihime and Rukia insisted on helping to wash up.

When the TV show ended, they all went outside where Tessai used a kidou spell to create a small fire in a claypot set in the centre of the picnic table. They sat on the benches and enjoyed toasted marshmallows and hot cocoa which Rukia and Renji had brought. It was fun sitting in the cold when you had a nice fire and hot drinks to warm you up.

"Oh, it's snowing!" Ururu's soft exclamation made everyone look up to see fat snowflakes falling from the dark sky. There were exclamations of delight, but it soon grew too cold and wet to stay outdoors so they extinguished the fire and went back inside to prepare for bed.

Rukia and Orihime had no trouble settling down in their shared futon and listened in amusement to the slight ruckus on the other side of the screen. When there was silence once more, Rukia went to peep around the screen and reported to Orihime that Ichigo and Renji were sharing one futon, Sado looked quite content curled up on the tatami mat under a blanket, and Ishida had an entire futon to himself.

\- o -

Tessai woke up early the next morning to prepare breakfast for everyone. Jinta and Ururu awoke early as well, the former to poke at the presents under the tree, the former to stop him and usher him to the kitchen, with much protests, to assist Tessai.

By the time the others awoke, there was a a traditional Japanese breakfast of steamed rice, grilled fish, tofu miso soup and assorted pickles waiting for them. A pristine blanket of snow lay on the ground, turning the abandoned lot outside the shoten into a Christmas wonderland.

Halfway through breakfast, Isshin arrived, loud and boisterous, red cheeked from the cold and bearing an oblong, hastily wrapped package. He greeted everyone, hugged his two daughters and begged Orihime to give him a hug, the request broken off when Ichigo tackled him to the floor.

After breakfast, they drew lots and took their turn selecting a present from under the tree. Ishida, who drew the last turn, found himself unwrapping Isshin's present with resignation. It turned out to be a stethoscope (a medical device for listening to one's heart) inscribed with the words 'Ishida Hospital'. Shaking his head, Ishida said he would return it to his father later and refused the teddy bear which a mortified Ichigo tried to give him in exchange.

Stifling his chuckles, Urahara took the stethoscope from Ishida, hit Isshin lightly over the head with it and said he would return it to his rightful owner. He then presented Ishida with the gift he had received, a voucher from an arts and craft shop in town.

With peace restored, they all went outside where Urahara and Yoruichi refereed a snowball fight, girls and against boys. Like the volleyball game at Ichigo's birthday at the beach, the girls won. At one point, the boys had to claw their way out from a avalanche of snowballs that Ururu launched at them - at least six tightly packed snowballs a second.

Laughing and shivering, they went back inside to warm up or change into spare yukata from Urahara while their clothes dried. Tessai had a hot lunch waiting for them - leftovers combined into a hearty rich stew, eaten with steaming hot rice and more miso soup.

They spent an hour lazing about after that, chatting or playing card games while watching TV. At three in the afternoon, it was time to thank their hosts and leave before it started snowing again.

Urahara and Yoruichi thanked them all for coming and urged them to drop by a week later to usher in the New Year. The group of friends then parted ways, Isshin going back with his daughters while Ichigo walked Orihime home.

\- o -

Orihime's mind was full of yesterday and today's happy memories, filled with food, fun and laughter. It wasn't until Ichigo had unlatched her gate and walked her to her door that she remembered something else.

"Oh, I haven't given you my present yet, Ichigo-kun!"

He shrugged.

"I haven't given you mine either."

"Would you like to come in then? For a bit?"

"Yes. Thank you."

Orihime beamed at him and opened the door. They removed their shoes and Orihime put on her house slippers.

"It's in my room," she said and was pleased when he followed her there. She caught up the small box from her desk and saw Ichigo looking around, smiling when he spotted Ichi-chan on her bed and the pink daruma doll on her desk with its one painted eye.

"That looks familiar."

Orihime blushed the same exact shade of pink.

"Oh! Well, when I bought the orange one for your birthday... uhm... I thought that... well... since I was..."

"It's fine, Orihime." Ichigo looked at her. "You can paint in the other eye anytime. I don't plan on loving anyone but you for the rest of our lives."

Orihime's mouth fell open as the box dropped from her fingers. She was quite sure that Ichigo loved her, but it was the first time he had actually said that. Then she was gasping in a breath and her eyes were stinging.

"I-Ichi... go... kun..." was all she managed as he took a step closer, his intense eyes gazing into hers.

"I love you, Orihime."

Orihime gulped and sniffed, blinking hard. She didn't want to say those precious three words back to him through a film of tears, happy though they were.

"I love you, Ichigo-kun! Oh, I love you so much!"

She threw her arms around his neck and he took a quick step back before regaining his balance. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he took her weight as she repeated the words breathlessly in his ear, more tears sliding down her cheeks.

Ichigo pulled back a little to kiss her and then he pulled back a bit more, frowning.

"Wait, are you crying?"

"Mhm hmm, but they're happy tears!" Laughing and blushing, Orihime brushed them away. "Don't worry about them!"

Ichigo's eyes softened as he rested his forehead against hers.

"Is that so? Well then, I'll make sure you shed only happy tears from now on."

He ignored the new tears welling up in her eyes and kissed her again and again until they were both panting for breath, their hearts racing.

With utmost reluctance, Ichigo pulled back, a crooked smile on his lips as he brushed his knuckles down one flushed cheek.

"Let's go back out. I want to give you my present too."

Smiling, Orihime picked up her present with trembling fingers and followed him out to the living room. They sat on the sofa and Ichigo took out a box from his bag, similar in size and shape as hers. He raised his eyebrows when Orihime blinked down at it and then looked at him.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

The wry tone in his voice made her smile, the same suspicion dawning in her mind.

"I think so."

Grinning, they presented their gifts to each other and unwrapped them to find identical jewellery boxes.

When they opened them, they exclaimed in unison. They had gotten each other the same eternity chains in sterling silver except that Ichigo's pendant was the letter 'I' and Orihime's was the letter 'O'. Holding them up, they started laughing at the sheer coincidence of it.

It was a minute or two before they sobered up, thanked each other with a hug and put on their gifts, smiling with bright eyes. After a few more lingering kisses, Ichigo stood up reluctantly.

"I'd better go back otherwise Goat Face will be making even more assumptions than usual. Don't forget, we're having hotpot tonight."

"I'll be there," Orihime promised.

Ichigo shook his head.

"I'll come over at six so wait for me."

"Alright."

Orihime stood at the door and waited until Ichigo had closed her gate and waved to her before she waved back and closed the door. Leaning against it, she took a deep breath and let it out. She took another, but still felt like she was floating on air. Touching the slender chain at her neck with trembling fingers, she smiled, her whole body flushed with happiness.

Out of all the precious memories she had made this year with Ichigo Kurosaki, this had to be the crown jewel of them all. But she knew that there would be many, many more to come throughout the years, each one better than the last.

\- Story End -

 **A/N:** Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! And if you did then please let me know :)


End file.
